The Cultural Upsets Eyjafjallajokul Hath Wrought

Grounded planes do more than inconvenience tourists looking to exploit the weakness of the American dollar—they spoil big events! The New York Philharmonic begins its “Russian Stravinsky” festival this week; the opening program, performed tomorrow and Thursday, was supposed to include the choral “Les Noces” but will now feature the purely orchestral “Jeu de cartes” instead because the flight restrictions have prevented The Mariinsky Theatre Chorus, which was set to perform with the Phil, from traveling to New York.

And this isn’t the only cultural upset Eyjafjallajokul has wrought.

The high-profile premiere of Iron Man 2 was set for next Monday in London, but has now been moved to Los Angeles, the Timesreported.

And Miley Cyrus was also to appear in London at a for-charity screening of her latest movie, The Last Song, which has also been canceled. So, while New Yorkers are obviously suffering from the loss of the Mariinsky Theatre Chorus, it’s really London that has been hurt most by the Icelandic volcano. Londoners: you have our sympathy!